How to Send Money to the UK (Explained in 4 Simple Steps)

In other words, a lot of money! For most customers, the exchange rate cost will be more important than the transfer fee. As money transfer companies can ... SkiptomaincontentAuthor, AndrewGibson AninternationalbanktransferisusuallythecheapestwaytosendmoneytotheUK. Youcanuseeitherabankoramoneytransfercompany. I’llexplainhowtheprocessworks,whatinformationyouneed,andthecostsinvolved. HowtosendmoneytotheUK(in4simplesteps) YoucansendmoneytoaUKbankaccountinjustfoursteps. Whetheryouuseabankormoneytransferspecialist,thestepsareprettymuchthesame.   Step1–Identificationcheck Allcustomersmustfirsthaveanidentificationcheck. Anti-moneylaunderingregulationsrequirethis. IfyouhavearesidentialaddressintheUK,youcanoftenbeidentifiedusingjustapassportnumberandaddress. Sometimesproofofaddressmightbeneededforoverseasresidents. Theregistrationprocessisnormallyprettyquick. Step2–Secureanexchangerate OncetheIDcheckisdone,youarereadytosecure anexchangerate. TosendmoneytotheUK,youarebuyingPounds(GBP)andsellingwhateverforeigncurrencyyouhold. Anyexchangeratequotedbyyourbankoramoneytransfercompanywillbeonalivebasis. Youcandecidewhethertogoaheadornot. Ifyouarehappytoproceed,yourbankormoneytransferspecialistwilllock-inyourrateforyou. Youwillthenbeemailedaconfirmationofyourtransaction. Thiswillshowtheexchangerateagreed,theamountofcurrencyyouhavesold,andtheamountofPoundsyouhavebought(willreceiveintheUKbankaccount). Step3–Sendinyourmoney Beforeanymoneyisconverted,youneedtopayforyourmoneytransfer. Abankwillrequireyourfundstobeinyouraccountalreadybeforesecuringanexchangerate. Whereasamoneytransfercompanywillallowyoutosendyourfundsinadayortwolater. Ifyouuseamoneytransfercompany,theywillprovideyouwiththebankdetailsoftheirclientaccount. Step4–YourmoneyisconvertedtoPoundsandsentout Onceyourbankormoneytransferspecialisthasreceivedyourmoney,theywillconvertthemintoPoundsSterlingattheexchangeratepreviouslyagreed. YourPoundsarethensenttotheUKbankaccountyouhaverequested.Thisissometimescalledthe‘beneficiary’. That’sit. GetaQuote   WhatinformationdoyouneedtosendmoneytoaUKbankaccount? TosendmoneytotheUnitedKingdom,youneedtoprovidedetailsofyourrecipient. Therecipientisalsoknownasthebeneficiary. You’llneedthefollowinginformation: Nameontheaccount UKbanksortcode(6numbers) Bankaccountnumber(8numbers) HowlongdoesittaketotransfermoneytotheUK? Thetimetakenlargelydependsonwherethemoneyiscomingfrom. Itusuallytakes1-2workingdaystosendmoneyfromtheEUtotheUK.TransfersfromtheUSnormallytakes2-3workingdays.Fromanyothercountry,itcantake3-5workingdays. MostinternationaltransferswillbesentviaSWIFT. WhileSWIFTishighlysecureandreliable,transactionstakeseveraldaystoclear. IsthereanylimitonhowmuchmoneyIcansendtotheUK? TherearenolegallimitsontheamountofmoneyyoucansendtotheUnitedKingdom. TheUKdoesnotrestrictmoneycominginoroutofthecountry. However,youmayfindyourbankhassetitsowndailylimits. ThebigUKbankstendtosetdailyonlinelimitsof£50,000-£100,000perday. Foreignbankstendtohavesimilarpolicies,soit’sbesttocheckwithyourbank. Forlargemoneytransfers,thesedailylimitscanslowdownyourpaymentandresultinmorefees. Becausemoneytransfercompaniesdon’ttendtohaveanylimitsofhowmuchyoucansend,theyareabetteroptionforlargetransfers. HowmuchdoesitcosttotransfermoneytotheUK? TherearetwotypesofchargestolookoutforwhensendingmoneytotheUK: Wirefees;and Exchangerates Eachbankandmoneytransferservicehastheirowncombinationoffeesandexchangerates. Wirefees Mostbankswillchargeyouawirefee(alsocalledatransferfee)everytimeyousendmoneytotheUK. Wirefeestendtobeafixedchargeregardlessofhowmuchyoutransfer. Iknowitcanbedifficulttryingtofigureoutwhatyourbankwillchargeyoubecausethefeeschedulescanbe15-20pageslong! Asaballpark,expecttopaytheequivalentof$20-$50inwirefees. Onewaytogetaroundbankchargesistouseamoneytransfercompany. Whilesomemoneytransfercompaniesalsochargefees,thereareothers,suchasourselves,whodon’tchargeyouanyfeesatall. ExchangeRates Mostofthebigbankswe’veresearchedchargeanexchangeratecostof2%-5%oftheamountyoutransfer. Asanexample,ifyoutransferred$USD50,000totheUK,theexchangeratecostsalonewouldbe$1,000to$2,500. Inotherwords,alotofmoney! Formostcustomers,theexchangeratecostwillbemoreimportantthanthetransferfee. Asmoneytransfercompaniescannormallychargeyoualotless,it’sworthgettinganalternativequote. GetaQuote Howtogetthebestexchangerate Whenitcomestoexchangerates:timingmatters. Butbecauseexchangerateschangeeveryfewseconds,it’seasytomissthebestrates. That’sacommonproblemforcustomerswhoaren’toverlyfamiliarwithforeignexchange. It’snottheirareaofexpertise. Oneoptionmightbetospeaktoamoneytransferspecialist. Amoneytransferspecialist,suchasourselves,cankeepyouinformedofmarkettrendsandofferguidanceonexchangerates. It’ssomethingthatsetsourserviceapartfrombanksandonline-onlyplatforms. Weworkwithyoutoachievethebestexchangeratepossible. Inpracticalterms,thatcouldmeanlettingyouknowwhentheratemovesinyourfavour,discussingatargetratetoaimfor,orlockinginaratetoremoverisk. QuickSummary AninternationalbanktransferisusuallythebestwaytotransfermoneytotheUK.  Itcanbedonethroughabankormoneytransferspecialist. TherearenolegallimitsonhowmuchmoneyyoucansendtoaUKbankaccount. Thetimetakencanbeanywherebetween1-5workingdaysdependingonwhatcountryyousendmoneyfrom. Therearetwocoststobeawareof:feesandexchangerates. Whoarewe? KeyCurrency isaleadingmoneytransferspecialist. We’vehelpedthousandsofcustomerssendmoneytotheUKatgreatexchangeratesandwithoutanyfees. Onethingthatseparatesusfromthebanksandonline-onlyplatformsisthatweprovideyouwithapersonalservice. Wedon’tmakeyoudownloadan‘app’anddoeverythingyourself. Instead,wecanhelpyousetupyourtransfer,answeranyquestionsyoumayhave, andguideyouoncurrentexchangerates. Asacompany,weareopenandtransparent. Ourcompanyhasa 5-star“Excellent”customerrating onTrustpilot;thehighestcustomerratingavailableforourindustry. Restassured,KeyCurrencyisanFCAregulatedAuthorisedPaymentInstitution(No.753989).Allmoneytransfersareconductedthroughsafeguardedclientaccounts. Whynotrequestafreequotebelowandseewhatyoucansave. GetaQuotehere Home Personal Business Partners UsefulArticles GBPtoEuro GBPtoUSD Reviews Howitworks Aboutus Contact PrivacyNotice Terms&Conditions EditorialPolicy Disclaimer KeyCurrencyLimited,St.PiranHouse,TruroTechnologyPark,Truro,TR12XN,UnitedKingdom.RegisteredinEnglandandWales(registeredno.9603083) KeyCurrencyLimitedisauthorisedandregulatedbytheFinancialConductAuthorityasanAuthorisedPaymentInstitution(FinancialServicesRegisterNo.753989). Theinformationcontainedonthiswebsiteisgeneralinnatureandisnottobeconstruedaspersonaladvice.